


Everything Will Be Alright

by Peoplehelpthepeople



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Experimentation, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Gay Simon (Detroit: Become Human), Hurt Simon (Detroit: Become Human), Hurt/Comfort, It's 3 am and I'm sleep deprived, Jericho - Freeform, Kidnapping, M/M, Simarkus, Simon Whump, Simon is kidnapped, Simon is so gay for Markus, Stratford Tower (Detroit: Become Human), Zlatko is a piece of shit, surprise surprise
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-11
Updated: 2020-06-13
Packaged: 2021-03-01 22:00:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,745
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23594224
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Peoplehelpthepeople/pseuds/Peoplehelpthepeople
Summary: After being left behind on the rooftop of the Stratford Tower, Simon attempts to make his way back to Jericho and stumbles across a man named "Zlatko"...
Relationships: Josh & Markus & North & Simon (Detroit: Become Human), Markus & Simon (Detroit: Become Human), Markus/Simon (Detroit: Become Human)
Comments: 7
Kudos: 37





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zlatko's abilities are far more advanced than what we initially believed.

"We can't stay silent anymore. It's time humans heard what we have to say."

Simon tore his gaze away from the damaged body sprawled out on the floor before him, and directed it towards Markus instead. The group had just arrived at their refuge after yet another unsuccessful attempt at gathering bio-components, this time from a low-security CyberLife warehouse, and Simon could tell Markus had had enough. Their people were shutting down by the minute, and they were short on both bio-components and thirium. More and more deviants were gathering in Jericho - the majority of them damaged and in need of immediate treatment that was now unavailable due to their lack of supplies. What good was Jericho for, if the few functioning members there couldn't even keep their own people alive?

"Markus, I'm sorry, but you and I both know they'll never listen to us..." Simon started meekly. The deviant leader's determined expression morphed into one of slight disappointment, or perhaps it was incredulity. Well, Simon did, admittedly, have a tendency to agree with nearly everything Markus said, so he was probably just taken aback by his sudden disagreement.

"Simon is right." Josh chimed in, rising from his previous crouching position. "Revealing ourselves will only make us more vulnerable. Putting our people in danger is the last thing we want to happen," Markus just shook his head.

"If we want freedom, we need to have the courage to ask for it. That's the only way humans will ever listen, and you know that."

"What do you wanna do, then?" North asked.

"Channel 16 broadcasts from the Stratford Tower. The control room is on the top floor, but it's not too difficult to access. That's where we need to go. We'll plan the operation down to the smallest detail; we can't leave anything to chance."

Josh let out a sound of disapproval. "I just don't think it's a good idea. We could risk losing even more of our people, and that's the last thing we need."

"But we have to do _something!_ " North urged. "Our people are shutting down. We can't keep staying here, and finding a new refuge won't be enough. We need our freedom now!"

"We can make the operation work if we plan everything perfectly. If everything goes by the plan, everybody will be fine and unscathed." Markus replied. His gaze trailed across the room, momentarily halting at the mangled body on the floor before him, before being drawn to Simon's.

Simon had found the other android's eyes mesmerizing ever since the day he first arrived at their refuge. They differed from the other androids': not only were they heterochromatic, but they also had a certain spark in them that the others lacked. They made him appear more human, in a way. Perhaps it was because he was a prototype.

_Simon wondered if there were more things about Markus that were different..._

_**DANGER** _

_> Core temperature UNSTABLE_

_> System in cooldown_

Simon could feel the warmth of a blush as it crawled up his neck. He tore his eyes away from Markus' while quickly swatting the notifications away, and hoped that the poor lighting in the room would conceal the sudden rush of color to his face.

"Oh well, then. I'm in", North spoke up. "I won't stay quiet while the humans destroy our people."

"Simon?"

"To be honest, I don't really know how this will turn out, but I'll be with you every step of the way." Simon decided, nodding slightly to confirm what he had just said.

"B-but..." Josh started, but was interrupted by a sudden noise coming from outside the room. All eyes were glued to the door as an android emerged. She was in awful shape, and clearly lost. Blue blood was smudged all over her tattered clothes, and she was cradling something in her arms. Or rather... _someone_. The android in her arms consisted of nothing more than a torso and a head, with the remains of his limbs looking as if they had been forcefully ripped off. Simon could hear a gasp but didn't bother to check out who had emitted the sound. Instead, he rushed over to them, Markus following close behind.

_> Unit **WR400 #286 107 360 "Traci"** detected_

_> Unit **AP700 #480 900 275 "L̶̗̓͑̀͠i̸̢̡̯̪̇̔ȁ̵̩̃m̶͎̙͍̊͋̔̀͜"** detected_

_> >Unit **AP700 #480 900 275 CRITICALLY DAMAGED**_ _; please contact CyberLife immediately_

****

As he approached them, Simon noticed how the WR400 was trembling, eyes glossy with tears. She clutched the body closer to her chest in a protective manner.

****

"Who- who are you?"

****

"My name is Markus", Markus spoke steadily, in the sort of soothing and reassuring tone that only he could produce. "Welcome to Jericho. You are in safe hands here."

****

The unknown android did not seem reassured at all.

****

"What happened to you?"

****

"Zlatko."

****

"What?"

****

"Zlatko. He's a-a madman who lures deviants into his house and turns them into m-monsters. We were naive enough to fall into his trap", the android explained gravely. "I had to watch him do experiments on Liam, and I-I tried to make it- make it stop, b-but he never listened and now he's m-missing his arms and his legs and it's my fault and I tried but he put- put me on silent mode and-"

****

Markus deliberately placed a hand on the now frantically rambling android's shoulder. Her software instability and core temperature were rising at an alarming rate. "Hey. Hey, calm down. It's okay, you're safe now. You are in Jericho now. Breathe."

****

"Hold on-" Simon interrupted all of the sudden. Markus gave him a questioning look while the WR400 continued to rant. "Something's off here. Androids _don't have_ a silent mode feature."

****

The deviant leader narrowed his eyes. What Simon had said was only partly true - older models, such as the WR400, did indeed not have a 'silent mode'. The feature was implemented in a new software update a few years later and was only applied to androids that were released after the update. It made perfect sense that Simon would not know this, since his model, the PL600, was even older than the WR400.

****

North shifted behind Markus. "Does that mean that Zlatko is able to modify android code? Because that is far more concerning than just physical experimentation." She and Simon shared a brief look of unanimous worry.

****

Markus waited until the android had managed to calm down before he proceeded. "Take your time", he soothed until her software stability evened out. She continued to cradle the damaged AP700 in her arms, but with less intensity than earlier.

****

"You said Zlatko experimented on androids, right? What sorts of experimentations were you talking about?" Markus asked carefully.

****

"Uhm... it's difficult to explain. His modifications are advanced, so he must have had professional experience with androids somehow. He- he disassembles androids and turns us into death machines, horribly ugly and terrifying. You couldn't even start to imagine how many androids he's got there." She brought her arms to her face. "Oh, it's dreadful..."

****

"But does he do anything besides physical modification?" North urged impatiently.

****

"Well, he did mention something called "trait chips", that he'd just recently started working on. I don't remember much, so I don't know exactly how they work, but I think they are able to override our internal code."

****

"-such as a silent mode feature, for instance." Muttered Markus. The female android froze as realization dawned upon her.

****

"Oh my, you're right."

****

This was bad. This was very, very bad. For the first time in a while, Simon felt genuinely scared. Just the thought of someone out there with that much power over androids was sickening.

****

"Markus, we need to do something about this", North hissed, desperation written all over her face. "This man is a huge threat to our kind."

****

"I know you're worried, North, but we need to sort out our priorities. First of all, we have to get to Stratford Tower and send our message, and then we'll look closer into Zlatko."

****

The strawberry-blonde just huffed and rolled her eyes before leaving. Markus continued to tend to the newcomers, reluctantly using their few remaining supplies. Simon watched him carefully. After a few hours, he found himself pacing around aimlessly, and eventually he settled by a large crate in the corner of the room. He had always liked this particular spot. It was somewhat hidden and easily overlooked by others, and yet he had a full view of the room. The blonde didn't realize that he'd zoned out before he suddenly felt a weight on his shoulder. A hand, he registered, before blinking a few times and turning around to face whoever had just touched him. He ended up staring directly into Markus' heterochromatic eyes.

****

"M-Markus! I didn't see you there", he managed to croak out. "Do you need something?"

****

Markus just cracked a small smile. "No, I just wanted to talk."

****

"Oh, alright.."

****

"Are you okay?"

****

"Me?" Simon asked incredulously. "Yes, of course I am okay, why shouldn't I be?"

****

"I'm just worried about you. Those news were the last thing we needed in this situation, and to be honest, they are pretty horrific."

****

"You're right. But I think worrying too much will only make it worse."

****

Markus nodded in agreement and settled down next to Simon. The hand that had previously rested on his shoulder had now been moved over to his back in a loose hug, and once again, Simon had to ignore the notifications that popped up in the corner of his vision, telling him that he was overheating. The two shared a moment of silence, their bodies closer than they had ever been before.

****

_"Perhaps the best thing we can do now is keep close to each other._ "

****


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Simon is left alone on the rooftop of the Stratford Tower.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for not updating sooner! I have been experiencing a major writer’s block, despite actually having planned out my story (for once).
> 
> Hopefully, the next updates will be quicker.

Simon was alone. Alone and scared.

The operation had gone fairly well. He, Markus, Josh and North had snuck into the Stratford Tower and accessed the control room on the top floor with few obstacles and delays. Markus successfully broadcasted his message, and everything seemed to be going by the plan until a SWAT team stormed the room, forcing them to evacuate to the roof of the building. Simon had been shot, resulting in acute damage to his leg which rendered him unable to continue.

North had panicked and urged Markus to execute the blonde. Simon knew very well that leaving him on the tower was a risky move - the humans could easily access his memory, and if that happened, Jericho would be destroyed in a blink. Yet, he didn't want to die. Not like this.

His artificial breath had hitched when Markus finally aimed the gun at him. He could have protested - he could have begged Markus not to shoot him, but his voice had stopped working and he was too overwhelmed by emotions and error notifications to even move his mouth.

Not like this. Not by Markus.

What happened next was all a blur to Simon. The gunshot never came, and instead something cold and heavy was placed in his hand - the gun - and he felt a pair of arms wrap around him. A hug. Markus was hugging him, much tighter than the one they had shared only a day earlier. He could have sworn he felt something soft and warm press against his forehead for a split second, but it may as well have been his wishful imagination.

The hug ended too quickly. The blonde android was forced to watch as the silhouettes of his three companions disappeared over the horizon. The humans would be up on the roof anytime soon, so he had to find a hiding place, and that rather quickly.

Simon didn't know how long he'd been hiding in the dark for. He heard voices come and go. At first, he believed there were only humans, but a few hours in he thought he could recognize the voice of Connor, the android whose purpose was assisting humans in hunting down deviants. Said android was infamously known among deviants, though only a handful of them had actually faced him. After what seemed like an eternity, Simon finally built up the courage to peek out from his hiding place.

His eyes rapidly scanned the crime scene. The sky was dark and drizzled with tiny stars. Fortunately for him, the rooftop was now empty, the humans probably having left to investigate elsewhere. Or perhaps, Simon thought to himself, they were just taking a break and would be back anytime soon. He knew that his best option was to run; find a way to get away and back to Jericho. He needed to be quick and stealthy. Unfortunately, those weren't exactly his specialities, and his injured leg wasn't helping. At least he had the gun that Markus so generously gave him.

Making sure he was well hidden again, Simon performed a self-check, scanning his body for errors or concealed damage.

> _Scanning unit **PL600 #501 743 923 "Simon"** [1% complete...]_

_> [25% complete...]_

_> [50% complete...]_

_> [75% complete...]_

_> [Scan complete]_

**_DANGER_ **

_> Core temperature **UNSTABLE**_

_> Thirium level **LOW**_

_> Biocomponent # **7339 DAMAGED**_

_ >Cause : external temperature_

_ >Please contact CyberLife immediately_

_> Biocomponent # **6845t CRITICALLY** **DAMAGED** ; please contact CyberLife immediately_

Great. Just great. Not only was his leg in critical condition, but apparently the cold had taken its toll on his vital components as well. Perhaps he could have avoided this if he weren't such an old model, who lacked proper temperature regulation and a thicker dermal layer. He swatted away the notifications bitterly, but before he could push aside all of them, a new one popped up.

_> Power-saving mode recommended. Activate power-saving mode?_

_> Y / N_

Simon hesitated for a moment. Activating the power-saving mode would simultaneously deactivate his skin, leaving him with an unmistakeable android appearance. The last thing he wanted was to be recognized and taken by humans. But then again, his power was draining rapidly, and he couldn't risk randomly switching off during his attempt to escape.

_> Y_

_> Power-saving mode activated_

_> Dermal layer deactivated_

His synthetic skin contracted, and he felt a sudden whisk of of cold wind against his exposed body. He pulled up his pant leg to take a look at the damage. The dark blue thirium stood in stark contrast to the white limb. His leg itself was embroidered with a large, gaping bullet hole, with thick thirium still gushing out of it. Simon figured he'd been shot from behind - he hadn't really had the time to check while it happened, because he was more focused on fleeing the broadcasting room.

Simon carefully ripped off a piece of his sleeve and wrapped it tightly where the wound is was, while mentally cursing himself for not thinking of stopping the bleeding sooner. A small voice in the back of his head told him it wouldn't be enough to stop the bleeding and that everything he was doing was in vain. After all, he did have more experience with tending to human wounds than android wounds, so it wouldn't be weird if he mixed them up a few times. He inhaled sharply. It was in moments like this that he was glad he couldn’t feel physical pain.

The deviant shakily rose to his feet and started limping towards the door that led to the broadcasting room. Though his movements were slow and stiff, his face bore a look of determination. Soon enough, he found his hand gripped tightly around the door handle. He hesitated. They could be waiting for him down there. His handgun would be useless against the armed humans, and there was no way he would be able to outrun their bullets. The whole situation was hopeless.

However, a tiny voice in his head told him that he had no choice but to open the door. This was his only chance of ever seeing Markus again. There was no other way to get down from the tower.

He took a deep breath and yanked open the door. 

To his outmost relief, the room was devoid of humans. Or rather, that was what he thought, until he heard the noise emitted from the neighboring room. His head snapped in the sound’s direction, and he found himself staring directly at a yellow door labeled “kitchen”. Luckily, the door was closed, but Simon couldn’t shake the feeling that it was about to be opened. Despite his fear and the error-notifications that would frequently pop up in the corner of his vision, he continued forwards, towards the exit. His goal wasn’t the exit, nor was it Jericho. It was Markus.


End file.
